Menu Spirulina: pellet-type seaweed for fish by Equo

Menu Spirulina is the granular feed created by Equo for herbivorous fish.A few days ago, we talked about the vegetal feed Seaweed Extreme, released by Hikari, and today we have a chance to review the Italian response.As we said before, seaweeds are a necessity for many fish, such as the surgeonfish. For a deeper look at surgeonfishes, we have a beautiful article written a few years ago that you can read here. Our goal is to give a well balanced food to these beautiful fish; the feed has to have a high concentration of plant material and a low concentration of protein.Equo Menu Spirulina is a granular feed available only in one size: the pellets are between 1.3 and 1.5 mm. These dimensions suit every aquarium fish except the smallest ones, but they have to be really small to not be able to eat it.It seems to be very appetizing, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that parts of the pellets remain on the surface, while the rest drops down. In this way, it’s easier for all the aquarium dwellers to reach the feed.The container comes with a convenient spoon for the dosages; orange like the brand symbol.

Equo Menu Spirulina composition

The feed results are composed of the following ingredients:

cereals;

fish and fish byproducts;

spirulina;

octopus flour;

krill flour;

oils and fats;

vegetal byproducts;

yeasts.

The package contains the can and the feed vacuum pack, the little spoon, and the instructions.The nutritional analysis is interesting:

Crude Protein 37%;

Crude Fats and Oils 6%;

Crude Fiber 1.8%;

Crude Ash 10.1%;

Phosphorus 1.4%;

Calcium 1.5%;

Sodium 0.3%;

Moisture 8%;

Other 34%

The following chart outlines the same analysis:The phosphorus level isn’t so low, but ashes are very low. The fats are contained, and the amount of calcium is quite good. The moisture percent is also well contained, while the “other” part includes the important mineral salts, this high because of the seaweed in the feed.There are proteins, but in a lower quantity compared to a general pellet-type feed; Equo Menu Marino (review) had 55%. As with other vegetal feeds I’ve reviewed, I expected not to find them at all. But their percentage is similar to the Hikari seaweeds in the Seaweed Extreme, probably to make it possible to use this feed as the only nutritional source, a well balanced diet for herbivorous fish. For example, among the surgeonfishes there’s the Acanthurus lineatus that tends to eat just seaweeds; it could benefit from this feed.

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Vitamins

We divided additives and vitamins in two graphics for easier viewing. The C vitamin has been inserted in the additives because its quantity is given in mg per kg.

Vitamin A (E672) 25,000 IU/kg.;

Vitamin D3 (E671 cholecalciferol) 2,800 IU/kg.;

Vitamin E (alfa-tocopheryl) 220 mg/kg.;

Stabilized vitamin C 330 mg/kg.;

E6 Zinc (sulfate) 88 mg/kg.;

E1 Ferrous (sulfate) 83 mg/kg.;

E5 Manganese (manganic oxide) 22 mg/kg.;

E2 Iodium (calcium iodate) 5.5 mg/kg.;

E4 Copper (pentahydrate sulfate) 5.5 mg/kg.;

E3 Cobalt (carbonate) 1.1 mg/kg.;

E8 Selenium (selenite) 0.3mg/kg.

Note that the vitamins are dominant. In particular, vitamin A, which facilitates a healthy growth, strengthens the sight, protects the skin and helps fertility. The various sulfates are only present in tiny quantities, though the iodine level is noteworthy. The mineral salts are less present than in a traditional granular feed.

Granular feed Equo Menu Spirulina – grains in macro

The package is made of aluminum, and the top screws closed, in order to keep the food cool and dry. In addition, the food is contained in a vacuum-sealed sack to combat humidity. Each package has the expiration date with year and month.Equo Menu Spirulina is available in two packages: 40 grams (like the one in our pictures) or 400 grams.

The price

The 40 gram can costs 10,70 euro (almost 27 cents per gram) and the bigger can of 400 grams costs 39,60 euro (9.9 cents per gram), that’s obviously the better deal, but only if you intend to finish it within six months from the time you open it.For a further discussion on fish food in general, check out this article; it’s from some years ago but it’s still relevant: fish feed.[translated by Agnese Poggi]

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danireef

Danilo Ronchi, aka DaniReef lives in Italy where he is hydraulic engineer, but starting from his love for reef aquarium and photography, he began to write about marine aquariums from 2006 and now he's published his first book "Marine Aquarium". From 2007 Danilo writes on his blog danireef.com where publishes articles, pictures, product reviews, aquariums coverage, reportage and history of his tank. Now he's happy to be part of Reefs.com